


Joey And Her Family

by iamisaac



Category: Chalet School
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-20
Updated: 2015-11-20
Packaged: 2018-05-02 13:53:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 430
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5250587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamisaac/pseuds/iamisaac





	Joey And Her Family

Most of Joey's children had done so well for themselves. Joey smiled as she looked around at the Christmas cards from them all. Six of them – Cecil, Geoff and Phil, Con, Felicity, and Steve – were coming home for the Christmas celebrations. Len was too busy with her own family: her newest daughter was only six weeks old, after all. Margot – well, nuns didn't come home for Christmas. Joey was proud of her daughter's vocation, even if it meant she didn't see the youngest triplet often. Similarly, it was the busiest time of year for Charles in his parish in the North of England. Mike was on a boat somewhere in the Pacific: the Navy didn't stop operations just because the Christmas holidays arrived. Felix...

Ah, Felix. Joey's smile faded a little as her eyes rested on the card he'd sent. She had hoped for great things from him when he got his place confirmed at the London School of Economics. A possible financier of the future. Neither she nor Jack could understand it when Felix dropped out at the end of his first year.

“Too dull, mother,” he'd said, “I want something more... something _more_.”

And it was his life, after all. Joey had tried to be understanding. But really, how could Felix possibly change direction so much that he went from economics to zoo keeper? How could he suggest that this was something more?

“You're doing what?” Joey had asked, thinking she'd misheard.

“Zoo keeper,” Felix had said briefly, his voice clear on the telephone. “Shovelling elephant poo, Mother.”

“Shovelling...” Joey had managed to keep her tears until the phone conversation had ended, but she still found it hard to understand why Felix was acting like this. She told herself it was temporary; a phase that he had to get through, like Margot's devil. Five years later, though, he was still in the same job. His Christmas card had arrived with a little scribbled note to her:  
 _  
Sorry I can't be home for Christmas, but the elephants don't feed themselves! It's my turn to stay, and anyway, Gail's with calf, so I wanted to stay. I know you'll understand – you love babies, too. F.  
_  
Joey had read it through twice, and now she picked it up again. Felix equated her with an elephant, it seemed. She put the card back and straightened her shoulders. The other children were here, and she would not let the festive period be spoiled by one boy. He must, after all, make his own choices in life. 

She just wished this hadn't been Felix's.


End file.
